ATH: Hofstra Holds Academic Recognition Ceremony

During halftime of Wednesday’s men’s basketball game between the Pride and Delaware, Hofstra honored nearly 275 student-athletes and nearly 60 spirit support personnel for their academic achievements during 2013. The group was recognized for achieving a 3.0 grade point average or better and includes 18 student-athletes, two dance team members and one cheerleader that earned a 4.0 GPA.

“The academic success of our student-athletes is our primary mission,” said Hofstra Vice President and Director of Athletics Jeffrey A. Hathaway. “These young men and women put an incredible amount of effort into their academic performance and it is important that we recognize that commitment. The Hofstra University community is proud of all those that were honored, especially the 21 students that achieved 4.0 grade point averages.”

Student-athletes from each of Hofstra’s 17 athletic teams were recognized, including 25 from baseball, 25 from field hockey, six from men’s basketball, seven from men’s cross country, five from men’s golf, 36 from men’s lacrosse, 19 from men’s soccer, 10 from men’s tennis, 21 from softball, nine from women’s basketball, nine from women’s cross country, eight from women’s golf, 31 from women’s lacrosse, 27 from women’s soccer, seven from women’s tennis, 16 from volleyball and 13 from wrestling.

The 18 Pride student-athletes who earned a 4.0 grade point average were:

Senior volleyball player Caity DeCoster (Crystal Lake, IL), who majors in community health

Sophomore field hockey player Lauren del Valle (Exton, PA), who is majoring in journalism

Senior Kaitlyn De Turo (South Setauket, NY) of the field hockey team, who is majoring in exercise science

Sophomore Lea Hinnen (Moehlin, Switzerland) of the women’s soccer team, who is majoring in sociology

Jill Maier (Honeoye Falls, NY), a 2013 women’s lacrosse graduate and the 2013 IWLCA Division I Scholar- Athlete of the Year and CAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year who majored in English with a concentration in American literature and early childhood and childhood education

Volleyball player Kylee Maneja (Kapolei, HI), a 2013 graduate who majored in community health

Cara Mattson (East Meadow, NY), a 2013 graduate of the women’s cross country program who majored in speech language hearing science and psychology, and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in speech pathology

Field hockey player Melissa McCarthy (Havertown, PA), a May 2013 graduate and 2012 CAA Field Hockey Scholar-Athlete of the Year who majored in elementary education and psychology

Freshman softball player Jessica Peslak (Livingston, NJ), a political science major

Freshman field hockey player Stella Schoen (Hamburg, Germany), majoring in international business

Kylie Shuster (Austin, TX), a 2013 graduate from the women’s soccer program who majored in speech communication and rhetorical studies

Tessa Ziemba (Wilmington, DE), a 2013 graduate of the softball program who majored in psychology

Dance team members Celynn Bail and Brittani French, and cheerleader Stephanie Malone also earned a 4.0 GPA.

In addition to the nearly 275 student-athletes with a 3.0 or better, 11 of Hofstra’s 17 teams compiled a cumulative grade point average over 3.0 as well. The women’s cross country team, under the direction of Head Coach Pete Alfano and Assistant Coach Tracy Koch, had the highest grade point average among all Hofstra teams with a GPA of 3.58 and was recognized for their academic efforts as well.

Hofstra also recognized the academic achievements of former men’s basketball star Loren Stokes, who completed his eligibility following the 2006-07 season. After pursuing a professional career, Stokes returned to Hofstra in September 2013 to complete his degree in interdisciplinary studies and graduated this past December.